To better understand the ranch today one must look back into its history at the people who settled in this region. Ancient Native Americans were drawn to this area by the incredible springs and the rich natural resources. The Loveless family pioneered the ranch and over the years it was made famous by the Boyd Chambers family who called this area home for over a century. This is the land of Pancho Villa and cross-border bandit raids of the early 1900s, which included the death of Texas Ranger Joe Sittre. Early ranchers were drawn to this land due to the abundance of natural springs and flowing water. Musgrave, Walker, Cold Water, McCombs and Anna Springs to name a few, which all still flow today. Rancho Viejo is watered entirely by spring water and has been modernized with over 135 miles of new poly pipe, storage and troughs. Additionally, over 250 miles of new roads have been improved or built, and the Headquarters have been remodeled into a modern comfortable private compound.

The ranch has around 2,800 feet of elevation change from 6,000 to 3,200 feet with amazing geology, outcrops, cliffs and plateaus surrounded by mountains in all directions. As you arrive at the front gate you get a sense of the vastness of the neighborhood. Some of the most scenic views in North America.

Improvements

The headquarters has a three-bedroom, two-bath freshly renovated main house with stone patios in front and back. Its located in Musgrave Canyon below Anna Spring which heads up at the top of the Sierra Vieja Mountains producing a canyon effect where cool air drops down into the headquarters and creates a natural cooling effect which lingers as the sun is slow to hit the canyon floor and quick to disappear in the afternoon. A recently remodeled 2 bunkroom/2 bath lodge with wide wrap around porches, a huge great room with kitchen and stone fireplace serves as the entertainment center for the ranch. Additional improvements include a large walk-in cooler with deer cleaning-station, several barns and outbuildings and a foremans house all in excellent condition. The ranch includes some personal property, furnishings, feeders, and equipment that will convey.

Habitat

This Far West Texas ranch is dominated by Chihuahuan Desert grasslands of blue gramma, green sprangletop, tobosa, black gramma, chino gramma and sideoats gramma with diverse native trees of oak, juniper, mesquite, desert willow, soapberry, hackberry, ash and Mexican walnut. Numerous large mountains, bluffs and mesas create excellent topography, and the views of the surrounding mountains are nothing short of breathtaking. Excellent grasses, shrubs, and Chihuahuan Desert cactus and plants provide habitat for native wildlife animals and livestock. This is an excellent cross-section of the various habitat types found in the high, mid, and lower elevation of West Texas, from rock outcrops to riparian woodlands, to spring fed live water creeks to rolling yucca grasslands, to desert canyons and scrublands.

Wildlife

This ranch has some of the best all-around hunting opportunities in the West Texas area as it combines the mountain habitats with the grassland and desert habitats. This is big Mule Deer country and has an existing Managed Land Permit for an extended hunting opportunities. Abundant mule deer, aoudad, mountain lions, and javelina can all be found here. Smaller animal and bird species can be found in the wooded canyon floors which include fox, ringtail cat, coyote, dove, Gambles quail and many, many large conveys of blue or scaled quail. Migrating neotropical songbirds use the corridors of water and vegetation making this a birders paradise. It is all about the water and this ranch is one of a kind with its springs, live water creeks, and improved water delivery system.

Water and Minerals

Rancho Viejo has many named springs, which some of the flow has been captured into a ranch wide water system. 135 Miles of new DR9 fusion welded poly pipe have been buried connection to new Poly storage tanks and new water troughs. Additionally, the springs provide miles of live water in the creeks and canyons and there is a very large flowing hot artesian well which comes out at 200 degrees and flows for miles to the Rio Grande River. There are 6,400 ac of Mineral Classified minerals. There are no leases or production on the ranch.